AMEN St.Louis

We're officially open!
http://www.amenstlouis.org


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God Meets Us In Unexpected Places

"God meets us in unexpected places at unexpected times. God of noise and of silence, surprise us." ( the Unfolding Journey)

Today we were suppose to put our Mary & Joseph in the quietest place in our house, and sit there for a few minutes in prayerful silence, what do we hear?

Mary and Joseph are sitting on a stack of puzzles at www.brostl.org, we started our toy distribution today. We will be giving out toys to over 4,000 children. It was quiet when M&J were here.

I confess I didn't sit silently in prayer, I was the only one and it was quiet, not sure what I heard, but I did feel anticipation about the day. How would it go. We received a phone call that a couple of major players for the day wouldn't be in due to illness. Yikes ! How would this play out! But God appeared in the form of a group of retired teachers and other volunteers who pulled together and took care of what was needed, and we had a delightful day.

God was there in that simple day of toy packing in the basement of the Presbytery and the 400 children we served today will have a brighter and more hopeful holiday.

"He said," Go out and stand on the mountain before the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by."
1Kings 19:11-13.

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The Advent Journey

Presbyterian Today has published a wonderful Advent Calendar for 2011

"The Unfolding Journey" by Taylor Lewis Guthrie Hartmann and John Blair Hartmann III

The First Week: Wonder and Wander


Readers are invited to use their Mary & Joseph from their family Nativity set to wonder and wander and prepare and pray as we discover the ways we are called to live out Christ's message in our lives.

We place Mary and Joseph on our porch or in our yard and think about how they might feel as they start their journey.

Mary and Joseph are in a flower pot in my yard, in the rain, in the dark. It's cold. I think about frightening times on the highway in unfamiliar locations, in the pouring rain, at night, wondering where the next exit might be. What if the car breaks down, what if, what if. I try to remember God is with me and
God will help show me the way.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord, teach me your paths. Psalm 25: 4-5


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Let its door be rugged and strong to turn back the tempter's power, but open and inviting to those who are your guests.

Ryan and Laura cleared off this shelf, we've decided it hasn't been moved since 1982. And surprise, cool windows. We had forgotten they were there, silly us.

Checking the old paint cans for keepers.

Wendy and the CLIPBOARD.

Cool piece of furniture lurking in the old bathroom, make us an offer!

Carolyn measures twice and cuts once!

Brendan and Ryan are .......... ( you fill in the blank).

Josh checks out the exhaust fan and Ryan .......(fill in the blank here, as well).

Look, there will be two sinks in this bathroom!

Century Mark

Doing our best to keep our volunteers cool!


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Make the threshold of this house smooth enough to be no stumbling block to children, or barrier to the elderly and disabled.

We’ve ( the “Royal” we) have been studying the plans carefully, and we’re making progress. With the assistance of a “real” plumber and “real” electrician and our top-notch site manager, Josh, and talented and willing and able volunteers and support volunteers, we are making progress. If you attended Oak Hill in the late 1950s early 1960s, you will be amazed by the transformation of the Annex Building.

You might remember a restroom on the second floor. We are transforming that room, and the room to the North of it ( to the right, facing the rest room) into two restrooms. Each containing two shower/dressing areas, double sinks and toilets. Also, amazing is the amount of “stuff” that we got rid of. It’s hard to let go. I found an old goose neck lamp that had a metal tag attached with a twist tie. It was stamped with the name and address of a long time member and church worker, Bob Kalhorn. My immediate thought was that we needed to save it. After counsel with Pastor Chris that Bob had plenty of light where he is now, ( Heaven, no doubt), and the pros and cons of hoarding, I decided to keep the tag, and we put the lamp next to the dumpster. I think Bob would have liked that. Bob was like so many of us, he loved finding a treasure in the alley, and was known to go “dumpster diving” with another member, Dave. I hope the lamp has found a home.

Some of our support volunteers catch up on dvds while mom and/or dad are busy, they are called out to haul light weight stuff and sweep and hammer!

Some of our support volunteers help set out meals and clean up and keep the cooling station stocked with beverages and snacks.

When not preparing a meal, some of us catch up on blog posts, MCU ads on photoshop and other "important" stuff.

O God, make the doorway of this house narrow enough to shut out all envy, pride, and strife.

We passed our framing inspection! The frames are up, and the showers are roughed in. We love our plumber and our volunteers!

It's hot, but the workers are staying hydrated. We have some wonderful volunteers bringing ice, and iced tea, and breakfast, lunch and dinner!